What’s Newsworthy Now?

Sometimes journalists start out writing one story. Then the focus shifts.

Two weeks ago, the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication released a survey on Ohioans’ attitudes about climate change. The article I initially started out to write would have led with the survey results. Then I would have put them in the context of what’s happening with energy policy in the state.

Then the Ohio Senate Public Utilities Committee met last week and began hearing testimony on a 90-page bill that would substantially relax what counts for the state’s energy efficiency and renewable energy standards. Now my article’s focus is on the terms of the bill and stakeholders’ responses to it.

The survey still matters, of course. And I discuss it in the context of the pending bill.

After all, while Bob and Betty Buckeye won’t vote directly on the pending bill, they will be deciding whether to re-elect various legislators or not. In the survey, a majority of Ohioans say they want more—not less—action from the state government to deal with climate change. Such actions would include reducing greenhouse gases with renewable energy and reduced energy demand.